


Remedy

by Vox (Meislovely)



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: F/F, Fusion, Gemitals, Lava - Freeform, Pretty much a written version of a comic with a little added on at the end, Smut, anime-esqe fight scenes, heat au, i think that's the right tag?, more smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-15
Updated: 2018-09-01
Packaged: 2019-04-23 02:26:01
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,004
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14322510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Meislovely/pseuds/Vox
Summary: Jasper's not used to heat on Earth, Pearl helps out.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Commissioned by moonwatcher13 and based on [ Jasker's heat au ](http://jasker.tumblr.com/post/172094283406)

Pearl scrubbed at a particularly tough stain on a plate, humming a small tune to herself. It was a quiet day. She was grateful for the break; they’d had so many missions lately that it was running them all ragged. Luckily, doing dishes always helped her unwind, and with Steven around there were always dishes.

Speaking of, she could hear his sandals as he trotted up the stairs and onto the porch. He shot her a smile when he came in, a stuffed bear in his arms, and gave a “Hi Pearl!” Before running over to where Jasper sat in the corner. 

That part was odd. Jasper had been there all day, but Pearl figured that she could use some space and decided not to bother her.

Steven murmured something to her, and Pearl went back to the dishes.

“Go away!” 

Pearl jolted at the exclamation, nearly dropping her plate.

Steven backed away, coming over to the counter. “Psst, Pearl.”

Pearl tore concerned eyes away from Jasper, giving him her attention.

“I think something’s wrong with Jasper.” He whispered, “She’s wearing her sweater, so she’s not mad at us, but…”

“I does seem odd after the last mission went so well. Unless...” She trailed off, eyeing the way Jasper’s hands clenched and pulled at the sweater, body shifting restlessly. She quickly started ushering him out, “You run along to your father’s house for the night, I’ll talk to Jasper.”

“Aw, but Pearl-!”

“No buts, off you go.”

She watched as he sulked down the beach and left her sight before fetching some blankets from the closet and slowly approaching Jasper. “Jasper, are you feeling alright?”

“No.” She growled.

“May I join you?”

She gave a vaguely affirmative sounding grunt.

Pearl stepped closer, crouching down in front of her. She tried to keep her voice gentle, but firm when she said, “That was quite the outburst earlier.”

Jasper’s teeth fastened around the sleeve of the sweater they’d given her and she let out a frustrated groan.

“Listen, you’ve been reformed for about a month now. I know why you’re feeling so irritated and uncomfortable.” She offered Jasper a kind smile, “Us Crystal Gems have been dealing with heat on our own for thousands of years. I know they probably handle things differently now on homeworld, but…”

She pointed to the sweater, “You had the right idea with the sweater! But you have a lot more options here on Earth.” 

Jasper squeezed herself tighter, voice coming out like she’d gargled rocks and broken glass that morning, “I don’t see how you could possibly h-help. No suppressants, no one to f-fight in an arena…”

“Fight? Oh no no no. Is that what they’re having quartz’ do these days? So, Homeworld still keeps everyone in the dark, then. Heat isn’t for fighting, it’s for reproducing.” She explained.

Jasper’s eyebrows knit together, “But everyone knows gems can’t do that.”

“Well, not anymore, no. But we used to. And while it doesn’t  _ work _ anymore, we still have many of those physical functions. I would be  _ very _ happy to give you a detailed history of gem reproduction another time! But right now, we need to get you nice and comfortable.”

She laid out the blankets and set a few puffy pillows at the end, “There we are, nice and soft. Now come here and lie down, head up here on the pillows.”

Jasper came out of her corner, flopping down with a sigh. “What… what are you gonna do?” She managed, still clutching at the fluffy sweater.

“Well, you’ve got lots of options!” She said, stroking Jasper’s hair. “I can comb your hair, make you some human food, and get you some more blankets. Or, I can touch you and ease your physical discomfort.”

“Y-You mean fucking.” She said plainly.

Heat came to Pearl’s cheeks, but she smiled. “Yes, I mean sex. But if you aren’t comfortable with that, I totally-”

“No! I-I mean I heard about other gems -but- I was curious but I’m an Earth Beta so they, y’know-” She kept stammering, face growing redder as she went on, “And I’ve thought about, with you- fuck, I mean- I like you a lot, but- I didn’t even know what heat  _ was _ I -ah-fuck-”

She groaned and turned over, burying her face in the pillows.

Pearl giggled, face unbearably hot at this point, “It’s okay, Jasper! I like you too! I wouldn’t have offered if I didn’t. Don’t worry, I’ve got you.” She said, pressing a hand to the one Jasper had clench into the fabric of her sweater. Jasper jolted, making a strained sound and looking at it.

Pearl patted her hair again, “Sh, sh, I know it’s very exciting to be touched right now, but I need to make sure you understand.” Pearl waited until Jasper met her eyes. “I’m going to be touching you in a lot of unfamiliar places and ways, and if  _ anything _ makes you feel uncomfortable you tell me right away and I’ll stop.

“Do you understand?”

“Y-Yeah, I got it Pearl. Just-” She pulled at the collar of her sweater, shifting and pinning Pearl with a molten gold look, “ _ Please _ h-help me.”

A sharp intake of breath hissed through her teeth, “Alright, I’m here.”

She pressed a reassuring kiss to Jasper’s face, feeling the heat under her lips. “You know, those homeworld gems were really missing out.” She murmured, brushing the hair out of her face to look at lidded eyes, “You’re so pretty Jasper.”

Pearl leaned down to kiss her, not stifling the groan that rose in her throat when their lips touched. Her hands, hesitant at first, quickly gained confidence to press and squeeze at Jasper’s breasts. Jasper shuddered, letting out a growl as she broke the kiss to pull the sweater over her head and toss it away with a grumbled “ _ Off _ .”

Pearl grinned, trailing a finger down her sternum. “You might want to shift your uniform off while you’re at it.”

The fabric dissolved under her fingertips. “There, isn’t that better?” She cooed, taking in the sight of striped skin under her hands. They returned to her breasts and she watched the way Jasper’s muscles jumped and moved when she circled a nipple.

“W-What do I-?” Jasper stifled a groan, pressing a hand to her face.

“Here, open your legs.” She said, watching Jasper’s face as she trailed a hand down her thigh.

“What’s-?” She cut herself off with a moan, this one unmuffled as she threw her head back with Pearl stroking delicately between her legs. “ _ Pearl! _ ”

The sound brought a sharp spike of heat to her stomach. It spread when Jasper’s fingers tangled in her hair. “Oh, you poor thing, this wet? You must’ve been in heat all last night!” She tutted, voice soft as silk.

“I-I need, I don’t know!” Jasper huffed, breathing staccato, “M-More?”

Pearl hummed, but her hand retreated, the other pushing gently on Jasper’s chest when she tried to rise.

“Pearl, why-? Your hand was-”

“I know, and you’re being  _ so  _ good.” She assured, pressing more kisses to her overheated face, “But if we finish too fast, it’ll just come right back.”

“I’m just going to come up here for a bit~” She sang, throwing a leg over Jasper’s stomach and giving a wiggle when she was situated on top. Jasper gave a pleased growl when she leaned down to kiss her again, with more heat this time. Her tongue swiping over plump lips and lapping into Jasper’s mouth. She kissed back, clumsily at first, but growing bolder and letting out more of the sweet groans that made Pearl want to turn to mush.

A hand tugged at her sash as Jasper broke the kiss, “Pearl, wait.”

“Oh,” Pearl took her hands away quickly, sitting up and inspecting Jasper’s face for any sign of discomfort. “Is everything alright?”

“Ah, fuck, d-don’t stop touching - I just-” Her hand released the sash, clutching and tugging at the back of Pearl’s uniform with pleading eyes. “I want this off. I-I wanna see- and  _ touch _ you.”

A smile found it’s way on Pearl’s face, heart skipping a beat. “O-Oh! You want me to shift off-”

“ _ Yes. _ ” Then softer, “A lot.”

She let her outfit dissolve into motes of light, licking her lips. “There. How’s that?”

Pearl’s hips bucked when Jasper’s hand grasped her thigh. The other wrapped around her chest, fingers almost meeting. “Yeah, I like this.” The hand around her leg pulled gently, rocking Pearl’s hips against her stomach. Pearl let out a gasp at the friction.

“Like that, right?”

Yes, that’s  _ very  _ good.” She managed to sit up, trying not to get carried away with Jasper’s gently squeezing hands. “ _ You’re  _ very good Jasper, but it’s my turn right now.”

She leaned back hands skimming down Jasper’s stomach, careful to avoid her clit at first. When she did press a soft stroke to it, Jasper’s hips jumped under her. “Ah, Pearl,  _ there! _ ”

Pearl hummed happily at the look on Jasper’s face and the sound of her panting out her name. “I’m going to move down, so I’ll need my leg, okay?”

Jasper nodded quickly, releasing her thigh and letting her scramble down to kneel between thighs thicker than her torso. Pearl pressed a hand to Jasper’s stomach -delighted that it had a lovely amount of give.

“Good girl.” She chirped, “This will be a bit different, I’m going to go inside now.”

“I-Inside?”

Pearl gave her a nod and slowly pressed her fingers in and curled them just a bit, grinning at the sight of Jasper throwing her head back. She started slow, but quickly picked up the pace, ignoring the oncoming soreness in her arm to watch Jasper’s hands clutch at the blankets.

“S-something is ha-” She cut herself off with a gasp and a loud moan, back arching sharply off the ground. Her thighs snapped up to clamp around Pearl, and she was suddenly glad that she was so sturdy.

“There you go,  _ good girl _ .” She murmured, letting her ride it out. When her muscles went slack and thighs stopped squeezing around her, she slowed to a stop, rubbing tenderly at her legs and stomach.

Jasper let out a peal of breathless laughter, catching Pearl off guard. She leaned forward, resting on Jasper’s stomach. “What is it?”

She was suddenly pulled up to Jasper’s chest, feeling it shudder with laughter. “I didn’t know heat could be  _ fun _ !”

“Oh, there  _ so _ much more I can show you.”

“What even was that? I didn’t know I could do that! Can I do that to you now?”

“One thing at a time!” Pearl giggled, “That was, well, an orgasm.”

“Oh, that was great!” Pearl nearly jolted in surprise when Jasper kissed her, big hands squeezing her gently and making her groan against Jasper’s lips. “So can I do that to you?”

The heat came back to Pearl’s face, “Oh, yes! I mean, if you want to!”

“ _ Definitely _ .” She looked Pearl up and down as she sat up on top of her, “Do I just do the same thing?”

Pearl held out her hands, “May I?”

Jasper nodded, placing her’s in them. Pearl pressed them to her chest, shuddering when Jasper’s thumbs found her nipples. Her body was already feverishly hot, but Jasper’s hands still felt warm against her.

“That good?” She asked, rubbing her thumbs in circles against her breasts.

Pearl felt her face heat further at the way golden eyes stared up at her, but gave a happy hum. “Yes, that’s  _ very _ good!” 

She guided Jasper’s hands down, giving a wiggle at the feel of them on her stomach and the tingling scrape of her nails- “You might want to shift those down.”

Jasper tilted her head, confused until she followed Pearl’s gaze. “Oh, the nails.” They glowed and retreated and Pearl let out a sigh of relief. 

“Rub here please.” Pearl murmured, trying to stay still.

Jasper’s fingers pressed between her legs, stroking firmly. Pearl leaned forward to bury her face in Jasper’s shoulder, letting out a quiet moan at finally getting the friction she needed.

“Just like that, Jasper.” She sighed, hips moving with the slow rhythm of her fingers.

Jasper’s free hand roamed her back and legs, mouth close to her ear when she asked, “Do you want me to go inside?”

Pearl gave a happy hum, pressing a kiss to Jasper’s cheek “ _ Please. _ ”

She gasped as a thick finger pressed in, biting her lip. “Oh, you have the perfect hands for this.” She rambled, pressing down as another joined the first, giving her a delightful  _ stretch _ .

Jasper thrust her finger’s slowly, listening closely to the sounds Pearl didn’t quite manage to muffle. A wide grin spread across her face when she found the spot that had Pearl clutching her hand in her hair. “Good spot?”

Pearl nodded frantically, rocking back against them, “Yes, that’s  _ perfect _ ! A little harder please!”

Jasper obliged with more vigor than Pearl was prepared for. She gasped and tugged at Jasper’s hair, rambling half-panted,half-murmured praise under her breath as her head started going blank.

“There you go… I’ve got you.” Jasper said tentatively, earning another round of incoherent compliments.

Pearl felt all of her muscles tense, toes curling as the rush of relief brought a gasp from her lips and a drawn out “ _ Jasper! _ ”

Jasper rubbed her back as her hand came to a slow stop. Pearl buried her face in Jasper’s neck, feeling coherent thought slowly come back to her as she let her body relax and cool.

“Hey.” Jasper murmured, looking anywhere but at Pearl. “Were you serious? When you said you liked me?”

Pearl grinned, “Of course. You’re gorgeous and headstrong and -even if you’re still learning- you’re very sweet, Jasper.”

Jasper pulled the blanket over her head and let out a groan. Pearl laughed and wiggled her way under to press kisses to her face until Jasper started laughing too. She could feel Jasper’s skin start to heat up against hers again and gave her a sly smile. “Is it coming back? I can show you a few of those other things I mentioned.”

“ _ Please _ .”


	2. Chapter 2

Pearl wiped a few raindrops off the display in front of her, letting out a grunt of frustration. Nothing changed. Peridot glanced over with an expression that looked how Pearl felt, and went back to fiddling with the wires and muttering under her breath.

They’d been trying to set up a monitoring system for the cluster for the nearly a month now. As secure as Steven’s bubble was, it didn’t stop the nagging feeling in her stomach that something could still go wrong. And even if nothing went wrong, it would be fascinating to study how Steven’s bubble affected it.

And seeing as the barn was… uncomfortable at the moment, they decided that the lighthouse would make an excellent spot. The wet hair sticking to her face was making Pearl rethink that decision.

They had rigged up something passable. Homeworld and Earth tech meshed together into something that was just on the edge of unsettling. The only problem with it was that it wouldn’t locate the cluster. They had scanned for it, manually input the coordinates, everything short of tunneling back down and setting it right on top of the bubble. 

She almost missed it when the display flashed green, but caught it out of the corner of her eye. She held her breath as a few numbers ran before they settled on the basic status of the cluster. A smile split her face as she hopped to her feet and scooped up the display to show Peridot.

“You’ve got to see this!”

She didn’t expect it to be echoed back in the same moment, or to see Peridot running at her with just as much excitement and stocking clad feet slipping in the wet grass.

They collided and Pearl squeezed her eyes shut, but impact with the ground never came. She gasped as another part of her started screaming. She wasn’t Pearl, and she wasn’t Peridot.

“What’s happening!?” She asked, feeling her face, her  _ nose _ . “I’m a fusion.” she answered quickly.

“Phosphophyllite.” Came out in a two toned voice, one awed and the other wracked with panic.

Her form glowed faintly at the revelation, the uncomfortable sensation of being pulled apart making her groan.

“How did, what - It’s okay. How do I feel?”

Phosphophyllite’s face twisted at answering her own questions, even more at asking them.

“I-I feel confused. I feel scared. Where’s Pearl?” Two of her arms -she jolted when she realized she had four- wrapped around her middle and patted her on the back. “She’s part of me…. Oh.”

The wave of panic slowly started to ebb, giving way to curiosity. She looked down at the slender arms still wrapped around herself and raised the other set to look at them. She  _ looked _ normal, aside from the extra limbs. But that just came with fusion, didn’t it? No, not all of them, but many.

“I’m a fusion.” She repeated quietly.

“Do I want to stay like this for a while?” Then, after a moment of thought, she grinned and picked up the display that one of her components had dropped, “Yes.”

Phosphophyllite got back to work. It was easier, now that they had locked on to the cluster. The readings were steady and she wrote them down in Peridot’s notebook. Everything else was tackled efficiently until all she had left to do was wait.

Phosphophyllite fidgeted with her hands. There was no more to do, but she wanted to stay for a while longer. She  _ liked _ existing.

“Is this how it always feels? Being a fusion?” She murmured, sitting inside the lighthouse to watch the rain fall outside. “Not all the time. It’s different with different people.”

“Peridot’s never fused before. Pearl has; what is it like with the others?”

“When she fuses with Amethyst, it’s sort of a balancing act. They round off each other’s jagged edges and fill in the cracks to find a certain kind of peace.” The lower set of arms wound their fingers together.

“When she fuses with Garnet, it’s like lifting each other up until they turn into someone bigger, smarter, stronger. It’s exhilarating.”

“Has she fused with Jasper?”

A sudden torrent of memories flooded her head of soft orange skin and shuddering gasps. She let out a startled shriek, form starting to glow. Shock and embarrassment mingled in the middle and pushed out until Peridot and Pearl flew away from each other with a  _ pop _ .

“Oh, I’m so sorry Peridot.” Pearl murmured, hands coming up in an effort to hide her burning face.

Peridot’s face held a dark flush of its own, “It’s okay.”

 

Pearl didn’t see Peridot the next day. That placed a solid weight of anxiety in her stomach. She told herself not to overthink it, that maybe Peridot was just busy or out having fun or something that was _ definitely _ not avoiding her.

Jasper sat on the couch, the frame dwarfed beneath her, eyes moving back and forth as she watched Pearl pace the living room.

“What’s wrong?” She finally asked.

Pearl’s face grew hot. She was aware how obvious it was when she was worrying about something, but that didn’t stop it from being embarrassing whenever someone caught her. She steepled her fingers together, deciding to come right out with it. “I think I may have made Peridot uncomfortable.”

Jasper raised an eyebrow.

Pearl wasn’t sure how much to divulge without Peridot’s approval. She didn’t know whether she wanted to reveal their fusion or not. 

“Well, we were doing something and I let slip some details about you and I, well…”

“Fucking?”

“ _ Having sex _ .” Pearl said, “And now I think she might be avoiding me. Oh, I wish I could talk to her about it.”

Jasper hummed for a moment. “Well I saw her take the warp pad somewhere earlier.”

Pearl blinked, where in the world could she have gone? She was certainly going to figure out. “Thank you, Jasper.”

“Just stop walking back and forth in front of the tv.” She said with a shrug. Then added, “Please.”

Pearl felt a small grin pull at her lips, but complied. She hopped onto the warp pad and was gone in a flash of light.

She tried the galaxy warp, the drop ship; places she knew Peridot had been before, but didn’t have any luck.

Pearl fidgeted with her fingers, a new worry forming. Had she gone to the barn? Well, what used to be the barn. That didn’t sound good. Out of all of them, Peridot had taken it the hardest when Lapis left. 

She warped to the countryside. There was no more towering building in the distance, but she knew which way to go by now.

Pearl spotted her, curled up in the small pool of water that sat beside the large crater in the ground. She approached cautiously, making sure her footsteps were audible enough not to startle. In vain it seemed. As soon as she called her name, Peridot’s head snapped up and she blinked rapidly.

“Pearl? What are you doing here?”

“I was looking for you. Are you… okay?” Ice cubes floated on the surface of the pool, only an ice tray’s worth and looking comically small compared to the size. Pearl had an inkling of what was bothering her.

“Heat.” She said shortly, confirming Pearl’s suspicions. “The water helps.”

Pearl nodded sympathetically. “Do you want me to… help you? Like I helped Jasper?” She was aware that Peridot was -despite being very clinical in most cases- a lot less blunt, and didn’t want to fluster her  _ too much _ .

Peridot thought for a moment, but shook her head. “No. I’m not ready for that kind of thing yet.”

“That’s alright. But if you change your mind, I’ve heard I’m quite skilled.” Pearl grinned at the emerald that spread over Peridot’s cheeks, but sobered quickly. Peridot looked so miserable, curled into a little ball and soaked through with cold water. “Would you like me to stay and talk?”

Peridot took another moment of though before giving her a stiff nod.

Pearl sat down next to the pool; not too close, but not so far that she had to speak louder. Then, she started talking.

They talked about the machine they built. They talked about funland and the arcade, human food and the people who owned the shops. They talked about Phosphophyllite.

Peridot’s heat was shorter than most. Pearl was a little jealous -her’s lasted the better part of a week, unchecked- but mostly relieved. She did not relish seeing her suffer.

When the sun went down, Peridot rose from the water. She breathed a sigh of relief and shivered a bit. Pearl provided a towel from her gem. 

“I think I’m ready to go home.”

Pearl gave her a soft smile.

  
  


Peridot found Garnet up on the hand of the statue, finishing the laundry. That was usually something that Pearl did -she jealousy hoarded most of the chores- but since she was away on a mission, Garnet had taken the responsibility.

“Peridot.” Garnet greeted.

“Hello, Garnet.” She stepped closer, sitting down next to the dryer and pulling her knees up to her chest. As much as she trusted Garnet, she was still a little intimidated. But after having a few days to sort through everything, she had some questions she needed answered.

Garnet didn’t falter with the laundry, some of them tossed in the dryer and others hung up. “You have something on your mind.”

“I- Yes, I do.” Peridot sputtered, dodging the subject for a while longer.

Garnet lowered her glasses, giving Peridot a look.

Peridot swallowed and finally broached the subject, tentatively. “It- It’s about fusion.”

Garnet paused for a moment, then turned to face Peridot fully. She looked at her for a long moment before sitting down in front of her. Peridot tried not to sputter more. Now that she had Garnet’s full attention, it was hard to stifle the nerves that bit at her heels.

She’d been told -on  _ multiple _ occasions- that tact was not her strong suit. With fusion being a topic so close to Garnet’s heart, it was a minefield that she had to tread with careful steps.

Peridot opened and closed her mouth a dozen different times with a dozen different phrasings of what she wanted to ask. Garnet waited patiently, to her great relief. Finally, she took the chance and blurted, “What do you think of fusion? I mean, I know you’re fond of it, but I just-!”

Garnet raised a hand to stop her rambling, “Fusion is an experience. But also a… responsibility. You have to know what each person wants out of it. With any relationship, it takes communication. It takes trust.”

Peridot wondered if she’d seen what she was going to ask, with how readily she had an answer. Or maybe it was just something she thought about a lot.

“Different gems fuse for different reasons. We usually fuse to fight or complete a task that is better done together.

“For gems like me, it’s how we want to live our lives.”

With that, Garnet rose to finish the laundry. Peridot chewed on that for a while, listening to the quiet hum of the dryer.

When the laundry was done, Garnet ruffled her hair and stepped onto the warp pad. “Try to relax.  You’ll do great.”

Peridot hoped that was the future vision talking.

 

When she found Steven a few hours later, he was already dressed with one foot out the door.

“Hey Peridot!” He said, chipper as ever. “I was just going to the Big Donut. Do you want to come with?”

“I will accompany you.”

His eyebrows rose, but a wide smile spread across his face. “Great! Donuts are always better with a friend.”

Peridot grinned. Even though she was coming along to talk, it was nice that Steven always welcomed her company.

They walked down to the Big Donut as Steven rambled on about his day; how his training was going, how he found a seagull in the fridge, and how he convinced Garnet and Jasper to go on a picnic with him later. Peridot didn’t need future vision to know that those were going to be choppy waters to navigate.

When Steven got his donut -it was customary for him to offer one to Peridot; customary for her to decline- they walked along the beach. The sunshine was nice, if a little oppressive and searing to her skin.

“Steven,” She started. It was easier to talk to him. “I want to ask about fusion.”

Steven paused mid-chew, but quickly continued, swallowing before speaking, “Well, what do you want to know?”

After the embarrassing moment with Garnet, she thought of a better way to phrase it. Something broad enough to have all kinds of answers, but still directed at what she was curious about. “What  does fusion mean to you?”

He was silent for a moment. Peridot was glad. She knew he didn’t have as much experience as Garnet, but to honestly consider and put thought into her question was… nice.

“Well, it’s sort of a bond, maybe? Well, more a conversation.” He thought harder, eyebrows knitting together as he tried to put his feelings into words. “It’s fun and it feels nice. But at the same time, it makes you better? And worse? It makes you… more.” He smiled at finding the right word.

“Like, it takes the good stuff from both of you and makes something  _ more _ ! But, to be honest, it takes the bad too.

“It can be kinda hard to keep it together and work through the bad, but if you talk about it and think through it together, it gets easier.”

It was different than Garnet’s answer, but similar in aspects. She was glad she decided to get more than one point of view.

“Communication seems to be a common theme.” She murmured thoughtfully.

He swallowed the last bite of his donut, “Oh yeah, that’s a big part. Well, it’s a big part of most things, I guess. When you communicate, everyone is on the same page and it makes everything way better.”

Peridot filed that away as important. “Thank you, Steven.”

“No problem!” He thought for a moment, “Are you thinking of trying it soon?”

“Something like that.”

Stars filled his eyes and he slapped crumb covered hands to his cheeks, “That’s so awesome! I bet whatever fusion you’re part of is gonna be super cool!”

Phosphophyllite was pretty ‘cool’ if she did say so herself. She wondered if Pearl thought so too. Well, if communication was so important, she’d just have to ask her.

 

They found Pearl at the counter when they came back, already back from the mission and scrubbing at the countertops as if she’d never left.

“Welcome back, Pearl!” Steven grinned, “How was the mission?”

Peridot sunk into the couch to fiddle with her tablet while Pearl told him all about where Amethyst and her had been. They’d gone to the top of a mountain somewhere to fight something with far too many legs.

When they were done and Steven carried on to his loft, she took a deep breath and ambled over. Pearl looked down at the tug on her sash. “Yes, Peridot?”

“Can we… talk?” She asked. Peridot could already feel her throat trying to close up with nerves.

“Of course. What do you need to talk about?”

“Can we talk  _ in private _ .” She stressed.

Pearl gave her a curious look, but nodded and led her outside. They walked up to the lighthouse in silence. Peridot knew Pearl could leap up there with little effort. She wondered if her lack of mobility was annoying, but refused to dwell on it.

They found a soft patch of grass next to the cliff to sit. The soft breeze made the sweat sticking to her skin cool uncomfortably, but the view was nice enough.

“So, what did you want to talk to me about?”

Peridot took in Pearl’s apprehensive look and rushed to assure her, “It’s nothing bad! Well, I mean, some of it is… difficult. But I, well-” She took a deep breath. Trust, communication. Easier said than done, but she’d do it anyways. “It’s about fusion.”

Pearl settled slightly at the assurance, motioning for her to go on.

“I’ve been discussing it with Garnet and Steven.” She started, swallowing hard. Why was this so difficult? She’d never had trouble speaking her mind before coming to Earth. “A-And I suppose I have a few concerns I’d like to talk about.”

A hand gently grasped her shoulder, and she shot a nervous glance at Pearl. “It’s okay. Whatever you need to tell me, you can go ahead and say it.”

Some of the tension leaked out of her and she seized the opportunity before it came back. 

“I’m scared!” She blurted out.

“What are you scared of?”

It was like pulling teeth. She felt shaky and clammy, but she couldn’t stop now. Not when she’d come this far.

“How- How  _ close _ everything is!” She rambled, “I’ve never had anyone that  _ close _ to me! I’ve never had anyone see me like that!” She’d never been that vulnerable, that laid bare to someone. Not with Lapis or Garnet or Steven, not even when she was poofed and stuck in a bubble.

“I don’t want you to see me any differently or  _ treat _ me differently. I don’t want to mess anything up.” 

She finally stopped, breath coming in rapid gasps as she tried -failed- to look Pearl in the eye.

“I  _ don’t _ see you any differently, Peridot.” Came the gentle assurance. “I did see you, gained a better understanding of who you are, but you saw me too. Do you think any less of me?”

Peridot  _ had _ seen Pearl. She’d seen fear and anxiety warring with confidence and perseverance. Seen a shaky, restless feeling at the way small details stuck out. But… it hadn’t changed how she saw Pearl. If anything, it made her appreciate her more. “N-No.”

She finally looked up to see Pearl’s soft smile. “I know that it’s hard. I know that it’s scary. But you’re not alone. I’m right here every step of the way.”

“Oh.” She wasn’t sure what else to say. Peridot hadn’t thought about it from that angle.

“And even then, if you don’t want to fuse again, you’re certainly not obligated to.”

“No!” She blurted, “I  _ do _ want to fuse again! I was going to ask if you wanted to show the others.”

“Now?”

“Yes.” Peridot felt her cheeks heat, “At least, if you’re okay with it.”

Pearl giggled, “Of course! But first,” She stood and held out her hand, “I’ve got to show you how to dance.”

Peridot took her hand.

Learning to dance wasn't easy. Pearl's style didn't suit her well and she had to improvise. It took awhile for her to figure out what worked for her, and until the sun was touching the horizon to sync with Pearl. But when they did, they melted together effortlessly.

It was nicer, now that she was expecting it. 

Phosphophyllite inspected herself, as if to make sure that all limbs were accounted for -It was quickly becoming a habit. Then, she let out a laugh and wrapped all four arms around herself. She’d almost forgotten how good it felt to  _ exist _ .

“Should I show the rest now?” She wondered aloud. After a moment, she nodded her head.

With hardly more than a glance to gauge the distance, she leapt off the cliff and plummeted down to the beach with a half excited-half terrified giggle. Landing was a bit harder with limbs that were longer than she realized, but she managed. One thing that was better with long limbs was running. She burst through the door, forgetting that maybe she should be a bit more subtle.

The only one there was Amethyst; who was paused mid sip of soda with eyes so wide that Phosphophyllite was concerned they might fall out of her head.

Her excitement tempered a bit and she struggled to regain her composure, “Hello, Amethyst.”

Amethyst slowly set her soda on the counter, not taking her eyes away. “Um, hi?”

“I’m Phosphophyllite.”

She watched Amethyst’s face screw up in confusion, then back to shock, and quickly to glee. “Oh… OH! OHOHOHOHO- Garnet’s gonna  _ freak _ when she sees you!!” She howled, rushing over to inspect her face.

Amethyst was smaller than she remembered -well, than her counterparts remembered; she only came up to her  _ thigh _ .

“What’s it like?” She asked, walking circles around her to see every angle. “You’re made of Peri and Pearl, right? You’ve got Peri’s visor and Pearl’s huge snoot.”

Phosphophyllite reached up to touch her nose. “My nose is just fine Amethyst. But it feels… nice. I’m enjoying it substantially.”

Amethyst let out a throaty laugh and Phosphophyllite didn’t fight the small grin that found its way onto her face.

“Definitely Peri and Pearl. You’re like, nerd squared.”

Phosphophyllite was caught between taking offense to the comment and wondering if squared would be an accurate measurement when Amethyst wrapped her arms around one of her legs. “It’s good to meet you.”

She crouched to pick Amethyst up (delighted that she could do so) and squeezed her to her chest like a teddy bear. “It’s nice to meet you too, Amethyst.”

The door flew open once more -Phosphophyllite was considering reinforcing it, if things like this kept happening- and Garnet ran inside with a picnic basket hanging from her arm, skidding to a stop when she laid eyes on her.

“Why are you running!?” She heard Steven yell breathlessly, the rapid slap of his flip flops and the deep  _ thud thud _ of Jasper’s following soon after.

They joined Garnet in no time, and with similar reactions.

Phosphophyllite froze under the sudden attention, holding Amethyst a little tighter. “Um, hello.”

“Oh. My. Gosh!!!!” Steven stage whispered.

“Right!?” Amethyst hollered, breaking the spell that stilled everyone. They all crowded around her shooting questions and wrapping arms around her. Even Jasper gave her a smile and a pat on the back that nearly threw her off her feet.

She answered them the best she could, slightly overwhelmed but with a warmth growing rapidly in her chest. They’d just met her, but the outpouring of love and joy she encountered for simply  _ existing _ made her calm facade break to reveal a wide, happy grin.

 

It was late at night when Peridot found Jasper. She wasn’t hard to find. She usually spent her nights on the poor couch, tv on and waiting for daylight and Steven to wake so she could go back to training and helping Pearl around the house again.

Peridot padded over and took a seat on the couch next to her. She had to adjust to find a good balancing spot to keep from sliding in where it bowed to hold Jasper’s weight.

Jasper glanced over at her, “What is it?”

“I can’t just sit next to you?” Peridot blushed.

“You can, but it’s not likely. You’re usually holed up in the bathroom this time of night.” Jasper shrugged, “You want something. What is it?”

She wasn’t wrong. Peridot wanted to talk -she’d wanted to talk a lot lately, but it wasn’t about fusion this time. Jasper was easy to talk to though. She was blunt and honest and spoke her mind, so it was easier to bring it up.

“What was it like dealing with your heat?”

Peridot’s eyebrows rose as Jasper’s face flushed. It seemed like she’d unintentionally found her achilles heel. She’d never seen Jasper react this way to anything.

“Pearl made you the offer too?”

Peridot nodded. “I wasn’t ready to take her up on it just yet, but… what was it like?”

Jasper opened and closed her mouth half a dozen time, eyebrows knitting together as she tried to find the right words. Finally, she sighed and looked away. “It was great. It  _ felt _ great.”

“Were you nervous?” She asked, fidgeting with her hands.

“Well, I-  _ Yes _ . At least at first. I didn’t know what to do, especially with someone that wasn’t another Jasper.” She admitted, “But Pearl’s good about that. She knows what she’s doing and has clear instructions for you if you don’t.”

Peridot took a moment to think about that. It sounded tempting, alluring. And if she didn’t like it, she could just ask to stop. She resolved to think about it more later, maybe talk it out with Pearl. 

She was getting a lot better at talking lately.

 

Jasper groaned quietly, the heat and pain in her stomach making it impossible to get comfortable in the soft nest of blankets they’d set up in Pearl’s room. Pearl was laying bonelessly on top of a pile of pillows, chest rising and falling rapidly in exhaustion.

No matter how much they fucked, it didn’t seem to stop. The heat stayed, the feverish needy feeling and the aching pain that came with it. Pearl, bless her heart, had taken it as a challenge at first, and while Jasper was impressed with her stamina, she was running herself ragged.

Speaking of, Pearl levered herself into a sitting position with a grunt and gave Jasper a tired smile, “Are you ready to go again.”

Jasper would’ve laughed if she wasn’t in pain. “Pearl, if you keep going like this, you’re probably gonna poof.”

“You’re right.” She sighed, flopping back down. It was a testament to her exhaustion that she hadn’t puffed up and set out to prove Jasper wrong. “Do you think it’s a lingering effect of the corruption?”

“I don’t know.” Jasper shrugged, shifting again in an effort to get comfortable. “I don’t know much about it besides how it feels.”

Pearl hummed, rubbing her head as if that would kick her tired brain into gear. “Would you mind if I asked Peridot’s advice? I’m afraid I’m all out of ideas.”

“Go for it.” She grumbled, ducking under the blankets when another bolt of pain lanced through her. If there was anyone else Jasper trusted with this, it was Peridot.

Pearl pushed herself to her feet and her clothes came back in a shimmer of light as she made her way out. Jasper focused on her breathing. It helped.

Peridot was soon marching through the door. The only indication of where she’d been was the mud sticking to her stockings. She paid no attention to it dissolving in the warm water of Pearl’s fountains - or the disapproving look Pearl gave for it.

“Can I see your gem?” Straight to the point. Jasper appreciated that.

She pulled the blankets away from her face, letting Peridot get a good look. She nodded and turned back to Pearl, “It’s not the corruption. It would’ve shown up on her gem.”

“We’ve never brought anyone back from it before.” Pearl pointed out, “There could be symptoms we don’t know about.”

Jasper sighed and pulled the blankets back up when they lapsed into a heated debate. Luckily, this one didn’t take as long as they usually did. They could take anywhere between a few hours to a few days; This one took a few minutes.

“Well, if you’ve already tried sex, why don’t you try some of the homeworld solutions?” Peridot asked.

Pearl gave Jasper a sympathetic look, “We don’t have any suppressants.”

“No, but there are a few other methods. Do you want to try them Jasper?”

Jasper was willing to try anything at this point.

They took her out to the barn -or, the crater where she’d been told a barn used to be- and had her sit in a shallow pool of ice cold water. It was somewhat refreshing, at least until her body heated more to compensate. The water around her begin to bubble and in a few minutes, the small pool had turned into a steaming crater.

They tried sparring, with Pearl darting close with her spear while Peridot shot lumps of iron from a distance. All that served to do was make it worse, make her itchy and uncomfortable.

Finally, Jasper sat down hard on the floor of the sky arena, shifting uncomfortably. “Nothing is working.” She grumbled, irritated and tired. Even worse, she knew they were suffering for it too. The pheromones filling the air had them pulling at collars and shifting restlessly.

Pearl’s spear flashed away and she heaved a sigh. “I’m out of ideas.”

“As am I.” Peridot lamented, collapsing to sit next to Jasper.

They were silent for a moment before Pearl offered a new suggestion, “Why don’t we fuse?”

“That’s a great idea!” Peridot jumped to her feet with a sudden rush of energy. “Phosphophyllite has both of our brain power. If there is a solution, she has the best chance of finding it.”

Jasper watched as they joined hands and started to dance. It was strange, seeing how well Pearl’s elegant twirling and sweeping motions blended with Peridot’s hopping, manic jig. But it did. They came  together in a flash of light and Jasper’s eyes widened.

She’d seen Phosphophyllite before, but… this was different. Phosphophyllite barely had time to look herself over before Jasper was on her feet and leaping towards her.

She let out a startled noise, but caught her with deft hands and a little spin to stop the momentum. “Woah, what’s gotten into you?”

Jasper didn’t answer. The feel of her taut muscles relaxing where Phosphophyllite touched her skin took the bulk of her thought process.

“Oh.” Phosphophyllite inspected her closely. Jasper felt suddenly bashful at reacting so extremely. “You wanted  _ me _ .”

Phosphophyllite lifted her easily, one pair of arms wrapping securely around her waist. “How curious. I didn’t know heat could be specific.”

“That makes both of us.” Jasper murmured, somewhat content just with being touched. 

“Would you be willing to help with a few experiments?”

Jasper’s knit together. “What do you mean?”

“I’m curious about-” She stopped suddenly, a splash of teal growing on her cheeks. Jasper felt a wiggle against her stomach, then a slight pressure. 

Her eyebrows shot up. Pearl never really everted, but it seemed that Phosphophyllite was different. Different, but still great. She gave her a smirk, “Will that be involved?”

“If you’re alright with it.”

“Then yes.”

Phosphophyllite smiled and set her down, making sure she was comfortable. Jasper didn’t have the heart to tell her that comfort was limited on the stone ground of the sky arena.

Jasper was patient for as long as she could be. The touching had lessened the discomfort, but it was coming back through the poking, prodding, and too gentle caresses. Her head steadily went blank, content melting into frustration.

Finally, Jasper wrapped her legs around Phosphophyllite’s waist and turned, catching her off guard and securing a place on top.

Phosphophyllite let out a giggle as Jasper ripped the collar of her own jumpsuit to pull it off. She started to do the same to Phosphophyllites, but paused, unsure if she was pushing a boundary.

Spindly fingers trailed down her arms, “Do it.”

All hesitation flew right out the window and a quick pull had the sound of tearing fabric filling the air. It was like earlier, she realized. With no more clothes between them, feeling Phosphophyllite’s skin against hers settled her frustration quickly. She let out a hum, laying against her as her head buzzed with pleasant feelings. Even more so when a few hands smoothed over her back.

“How are you feeling?”

“Good.”

“So skin to skin contact is important.” She muttered to herself, pulling Jasper closer.

“Yep.”

They stayed like that for a while. Jasper was content to simply be for now, muscles turning to Jelly when Phosphophyllite’s hands pressed into her back.

The world did an abrupt flip and she was on bottom again. Phosphophyllite stayed pressed against her, so she didn’t really mind. It was when she interlaced their fingers and brought Jasper’s hands above her head the the heat spread through her stomach and made her squirm. There weren’t many people bigger than her, and the fact that one of them was between her legs made her hips give a plaintive buck against the bulge she could feel much better without the clothes.

“Be patient, Jasper.” She cooed, her other set of hands wandering ceaselessly over her breasts, stomach, back, thighs, leaving tingling goosebumps in their wake. It was rougher this time, less fluttering fingertips and more firm touches.

Jasper’s breath hitched and grew labored. This was almost as frustrating as not being touched at all.

“Please.” She rasped.

The hands stilled and Phosphophyllite’s eyes met hers. She hadn’t known that she’d phased off her visor until the teal eyes met hers. “Please what, Jasper?” She asked, lips pulling up at the side.

Jasper growled. She knew  _ exactly _ what Jasper meant. Her face burned, but she said it anyways. “Please  _ fuck me _ .”

“Of course.” She pressed kisses all over Jasper’s face, hands trailing down to grasp Jasper’s hips. She pressed in slowly, eyes focused on Jasper’s face and smiling when a groan slipped past her lips. The speed was near torture and it took nearly all of Jasper’s self control not to squirm and try to press closer. When their hips met, Phosphophyllite paused, “How does that feel?”

“Good.” Jasper panted, “But I want - I  _ need _ you to go faster,  _ please _ .”

Phosphophyllite let out a breathless giggle. “It’s hard to argue when you ask so nicely.”

She withdrew, and the next was faster,  _ harder _ . Jasper pressed her face into Phosphophyllite’s neck, letting out a moan at the stretch. That spurred her on, thrusts slowly picking up speed until Jasper’s body jolted every time she slid back in. 

Jasper squeezed her hands, moving her hips with the fast pace she set as the heat in her stomach grew; though it felt good, rather than frustrating. Phosphophyllite was quiet, moans breathy and almost silent.

Jasper bit her lip hard when one of the hands released her hip, brushing over the white patch of hair to rub tight circles against her clit. Her muscles tensed, breath stuttering harshly as she came. White hot pleasure filled her head and she vaguely heard the breathless gasp when Phosphophyllite followed.

When she came back, her hands were free to wrap around Phosphophyllite’s shoulders. The heat didn’t immediately snap back as it had before. The feverish feeling faded and left her relaxed and comfortable in Phosphophyllite’s arms. They stayed tangled for a long while, without the energy or motive to move.

Slowly, Phosphophyllite started to glow, shift, then pop apart to leave Pearl and Peridot in her arms.

Jasper’s eyes widened at the sudden defusing, “Are you both okay?”

“Yeah, we just needed a break.” Pearl murmured, wiggling until she was comfortable in the crook of Jasper’s arm. “This is all sort of new, for Peridot and Phosphophyllite.”

Jasper’s eyebrows rose and she looked over to Peridot, sticky and naked with her hair smushed on one side. “So… How was it?”

Peridot thought for a moment before finally landing on, “Unexpected, but enjoyable.” She took Pearl’s lead and squirmed a bit to get comfortable. She gave them both a small, hesitant smile. “I… I think I am ready for this kind of thing after all.”

Pearl and Jasper shared a look, that quickly turned into a pair of wide grins.


	3. Chapter 3

Jasper collapsed onto her side in one of Pearl’s fountains, sweat cooling quickly on her feverish skin. Pearl was quiet in her arms… for now. Jasper could tell - through the slow tensing up of loose muscles- that she was still worried.

After they released Bismuth and told her the truth about what happened, she’d been cooped up in her forge. ‘Hammering out her stress’ Pearl called it. That apparently didn’t stop her from having more concern than her small body should’ve been able to hold. Between pacing a groove in the floor and obsessive cleaning, Jasper would’ve thought that Pearl was going to give herself a heart attack. A miraculous feat for one that didn’t need an actual heart.

“Do you think she’s okay?” Pearl murmured.

Jasper heaved a sigh.

“Pearl.” She huffed, “You need to stop worrying about it.”

Thin fingers tangled and untangled, a small frown pulling at her lips. “I know, it’s just-”

“I know. You care about her.” Jasper sighed, rubbing small circles against Pearl’s back. “But working yourself up won’t help anyone, especially not you.”

Pearl was silent and Jasper pressed a kiss to her gem. She’d already tried one form of strenuous activity to distract her. Time to try another.

“Let’s spar.”

“I don’t know…”

“We’ve got to take your mind off it somehow.”

Pearl paused for a moment, but gave her a nod. “You’re right.”

They dressed and made their way to the sky arena. The sun was shining with only a slight breeze to offset it, but Pearl didn’t seem to notice. She was usually the one to comment on the weather, not Jasper.

Jasper stretched and squared her shoulders, helmet appearing in a flash of light. “Whenever you’re ready.”

Pearl pulled out her spear and they ran through a couple of drills before starting to spar in earnest. It started out fine, but quickly deteriorated. Jasper was growing more and more frustrated. Pearl was making more and more clumsy mistakes; a mistep here, a faraway look there. She found herself having to go easy on Pearl. That wasn’t something she’d ever had to do, it was unnerving.

Finally, she put a hand up in a motion to stop. “This isn’t working.”

“But you were just getting to the good part!”

Jasper whirled to find Steven and Connie sitting in the stands. Her face screwed up at the realization that she’d been so focused on Pearl, she hadn’t seen them warp in. Great, now  _ she _ was the one worrying.

They ran up, Steven with stars in his eyes, but Connie looked thoughtful. “Are you alright? You weren’t fighting like you usually do.”

An embarrassed flush spread over Pearl’s cheeks. “I’m fine.”

“She’s being a worry-wart.” Jasper pointed out.

Steven nodded in understanding, far too used to Pearl’s anxious tendencies. “It’s okay, we can find a way to get her to have some fun! Right, Connie?”

“Definitely.” 

Jasper grinned as Pearl shot her a betrayed look, Steven and Connie tugging her along and rapidly planning a ‘fun’ day.

Jasper was going to have to find another way to fix the problem.

 

When she left, Jasper hadn’t thought to ask about the location of Bismuth’s forge. She knew where to warp, but didn’t expect to be faced with rocky slopes and a smoking mountain. Jasper abruptly realized that she had no earthly idea where she was going. But she’d already made up her mind, too late to go back.

So, she started forward, down a steep slope surrounded by softly bubbling pits of water and immense heat. Her feet had trouble keeping traction on the loose porous rocks and the smoke stunk of sulfur and burned her eyes.

A sound started at a whisper and slowly got louder the more she walked down the slope until it finally became something she could identify. Metal clanging. Jasper breathed a sigh of relief and started towards it with more confidence.

It wasn’t difficult to see once she got close. A perfect cube half submerged within jagged and uneven rock. She stepped forward, almost jumping at the way it hissed ominously and starting to slam open with enough force to shake the earth beneath her feet to reveal a staircase leading down. The sound was much louder with the door open, echoing across the mountains.

Jasper took a deep breath and steeled herself before descending into the forge.

The heat was almost suffocating when she got in, and she could see why. Lines of red hot lava flowed through the walls, glowing through uniform lines and circles. That wasn’t what stood out most, though. Immediately after the stairs were piles and piles of axes and swords, hammers and maces, shields and staves scattered about. Her eyebrows knit together, ears ringing with the rhythmic clang of the hammer. She could only see her silhouette in the soft glow, an outline of her raising her hand and bringing it down on the anvil.

Stepping over the weapons proved to be a bad idea. Almost immediately, her toe caught the tip of a hammer and sent it clattering down the pile.

The hammering paused and she held her breath, suddenly feeling as if she were creeping through a dragon’s lair.

“Go away, Pearl.”

It resumed.

Jasper’s eyes narrowed. She stopped trying to tiptoe and simply climbed over them. When she finally got through -she was sure that they made even more noise than the hammering- she heaved a sigh and said, “Not Pearl.”

Bismuth stopped again. Her hand glowed and returned to its usual shape and she turned. Gems didn’t usually show exhaustion -at least, not like humans. But Bismuth looked weary beyond belief. Bags hung heavy under squinting eyes, her mouth drawn into a thin, tight line. She only looked at Jasper for a moment before turning back to her anvil.

“Then stay if you want.”

Jasper let out a breath she didn’t know she’d been holding. Sure, Bismuth had been nothing but kind to her, but she hadn’t expected to get the closest Bismuth could muster to open arms.

She licked her lips nervously. She hadn’t really thought of a plan before coming, hadn’t even thought about it on the walk over. She wasn’t anywhere near good at comforting people. She thought back on what Pearl did had done for her, how she’d helped Jasper shed some of the extra weight she’d been carrying on her shoulders.

“So… Rose being Pink Diamond, huh?”

Jasper immediately felt the urge to bash her head on the hot stone wall. That was maybe the clumsiest way she could have breached the topic.

Bismuth seemed to think so too, judging by the cutting look thrown in her direction.

Against her better judgement, she continued.

“That must be… a lot.”

Bismuth’s jaw flexed, bringing her hammer down a lot harder than last time. “And what would you know about that?”

She nearly flinched at the bitten words. Her shoulders set, but she bit her tongue when something vicious wanted to come out. Instead, she asked, “What do you mean?”

“I mean, you’ve obviously never had a loyal facet in your gem.” Bismuth growled, pausing her hammering to sneer at Jasper. “You came to our side the second Pearl made doe eyes at you.”

Jasper bristled. Bismuth had  _ no idea _ what she went through to get where she was. Jasper knew she was just lashing out, she was guilty of the same before. She opened her mouth to say so, but Bismuth continued.

“Or maybe you are loyal. To the Diamonds at least. I bet they’d be so proud that they have spy in the Crystal Gems, huh?”

“You have no idea what you’re talking about.” Jasper growled. Her temper was already thin with stress lately, she didn’t need Bismuth testing it.

“I think I do. Then again, why should I expect you to know anything about the Crystal Gems?”

“And why would you?” She barked, brittle patience snapping. “You were the one stuck in a fucking bubble for thousands of years! What makes you think you know  _ anything _ about what’s going on!?”

A fist drove into her cheek before she could even regret the words, making her head snap to the side. If that’s how it was going to be, fine. She was a lot more fluent in this language anyhow.

Her helmet materialized fast enough to keep the next punch from doing that much damage, but it did help with the kick that drove all the air out of her lungs. She’d never been so glad that she didn’t need to breathe.

“You don’t know anything!” Bismuth roared. Her cheek gave a sickening ‘ _ crack _ ’ when Jasper drove an elbow into it, completing the spin with a back kick to Bismuth’s ribs.

She flew back into anvil, but didn’t stay down for long; coming back faster than a gem her size had any right to, fisting her hands in Jasper’s collar and driving her back into the wall.

“You don’t know what it’s like to be lied to!” She punctuated it by slamming Jasper back against the wall. The rock behind her gave a shuddering crack and she felt something hot on the back of her uniform.

When Bismuth pulled her forward and shoved her back again, the crack turned to a crunch as she went through. A split second later, seering lava ran down her face and body. She jerked at the uncomfortable burn, twisting and writhing in Bismuth’s grasp.

She pulled her legs up and kicked as hard as she could into Bismuth’s chest. The hands let go and she gasped when she finally emerged from the lava, shaking her head to get it out of her eyes. When she could see again, she found that bismuth was prying herself out of her own spewing hole in the wall. She darted over before she could recover with a savage punch to the stomach that made her wheeze and a kick that made her stumble away. Her blood was running hot and she wasn’t about to let Bismuth get the upper hand again.

At least, she thought that before Bismuth grabbed the anvil with both hands and pried it from the ground, launching it towards Jasper. She didn’t have time to move before it thumped into her chest and knocked her off her feet into on of the countless mounds of weapons.

Her left hand groped around until it found the hilt of something and she brought up a staff just in time to catch Bismuth’s hammer coming down towards her.

“You don’t know what it’s like to give your all to something, only to have it bite you in the ass!” The words were starting to feel familiar, but she didn’t have time to think about it.

The hammer turned to a blade and Jasper had to roll out of the way as it sliced cleanly through the staff, making goosebumps raise along her arms when it took a lock of hair with it. She didn’t take a chance to see what Bismuth would do next, tackling her to the ground.

The fight devolved from there, to them throwing punches in the middle of the room, trying to hurt the other as much as the other hurt them and them some.

“You don’t understand what it’s like to be  _ betrayed _ !” She screamed, fitting hands around Jasper’s neck and trying to buck her off at the same time, rage and hurt making her sloppy.

At Bismuth’s words, something clicked in Jasper’s head. They felt so familiar because they  _ were _ . Jasper remembered feeling exactly that when she found out. Everything she went through just because Rose Was Pink Diamond.

She gripped the hands around her neck and pulled them apart, snapping her head down to bash Bismuth right between the eyes. The ground beneath them shuddered and gave way, sending them headlong into a circular pit, lined with lava. 

They crashed to a halt, but Jasper quickly scrambled on top, trying to pin Bismuth’s arms with her thighs.

“Bismuth!” She snapped.

Bismuth writhed and struggled, teeth bared as if she were about to snap at Jasper’s throat.

“Bismuth, listen to me!”

“Fuck you!”

Jasper pressed her hands to Bismuth’s cheeks, waiting until exhaustion started to win out and the struggling began to slow. She looked at Bismuth’s eyes, at the pain and conflict, the hurt and betrayal. “ _ I understand. _ ”

Disbelief, then fear, then - finally - relief dawned on her face. She went still and tense, except for the heaving of her chest as she drew in great gusting breaths.

Jasper felt her own breath stutter as hot tears burned at her eyes. “I understand.” She repeated, voice cracking in her throat.

Bismuth gave a choking sob, going slack beneath her. Jasper slumped off to the side, laying down next to her and pressing the heels of her hands to her eyelids. She felt dumb, crying on the floor of a sweltering forge after wrecking it. The tears hurt, clawed at her chest, but they felt  _ good _ . Like taking her boots off after a long day, or coming home to have tea with Pearl after tracking down a crafty corrupted gem. So she let it go, let it spill out in sobs as Bismuth’s echoed back to her.

When they tapered into heavy breathing, then to sniffles, then silence - Jasper finally spoke up again. She didn’t know Bismuth, not really, but she knew that she needed to hear it. Jasper needed to say it. “I tried to kill her.”

Bismuth’s head turned towards her, but she kept her eyes glued to the ceiling far above their pit. “I spent so long feeling like shit for not being able to protect my Diamond, then I came to Earth and  _ tried to kill her _ .”

“You’re telling me.” Bismuth rasped, “I made a weapon  _ specifically _ for killing a Diamond. For killing  _ Pink Diamond _ . I didn’t know Rose  _ was _ Pink.”

“You and me both.”

“We’re a mess.”

“Yeah we are.”

They were silent for a moment. The lava that had streaked across the walls and floor during their fight was cooling and dimming, making it harder to see. Jasper doubted Bismuth  _ wanted _ to see the mess they made.

“Sorry for saying all that stuff to you.” Bismuth murmured, “And for shoving you through a wall.”

“I get it.” Jasper knew she could be the same way when she was in pain. “Apology accepted. Sorry for headbutting you through the floor.”

Bismuth laughed and Jasper couldn’t help but crack a smile at the joy in the sound. “We should get out of here.”

Jasper glanced around, “Don’t you want to clean up first? I’ll help.”

Bismuth waved a hand, letting out a grunt as she stood. “Nah, I’ll leave it for later.” She held a hand out.

Jasper gave her a crooked smile and took it, but let out a startled huff when Bismuth pulled her into a tight hug. “Thanks.”

Slowly, Jasper’s arms rose to return it. A warm, buzzing feeling ran through her and -after a flash of light- the pit became  _ a lot _ more cramped. Lava leaked out of the walls where her shoulders were scrunched against them and she clicked her tongue. “Isn’t this place wrecked enough?”

She gasped when her voice came out two toned and a lot louder than usual. “Holy shit I’m a fusion.” She tried to turn, but -not only was it too dim in the room- she was too firmly stuck to get a good look at herself. “A big one too…”

She grunted and wiggled a bit, but was stuck tight in the pit of the forge. With a groan, she hissed, “You better form me again when you get out of here.” and dissolved into her counterparts.

“Woah!” Bismuth shouted with a laugh, “I didn’t know you had that kind of gumption, Tiger!”

“Thanks?” What was gumption?

“Come on! Let’s go figure out who she is!” Bismuth whooped, practically dragging Jasper out of the forge and onto the rocky mountainside. Her excitement was contagious, even Jasper was thrilled to see what their fusion was like.

Bismuth turned to her, wide grin fixed on her face. “You ready?”

“Yeah.”

Bismuth pulled Jasper into another hug. It was less startling this time, forms melding together and growing. It was much better now that she could stretch out. This was more like it. She stretched all four arms to the sky, smiling at the thick muscles bunching and the dark stars that littered them.

“So, who am I?” She asked, hands on her hips as she looked down at herself and the thick rainbow locks spilling over her shoulders. “Hmm, Rainbow Obsidian, I think.”

She grinned. With that out of the way, she looked around, humming to herself. “I should go show the others.”

She nodded to herself and bounded down the mountain towards the warp pad. It was a struggle to fit in the beam of light -and she realized abruptly that there was no way she’d fit inside the house- but her mind was made up. She scrunched up as much as she could and warped to the hand of the statue.

Rainbow nearly toppled over as soon as she got there, inches from accidentally crushing the washer with her foot.

A startled shriek drew her attention to the beach. Pearl had bolted to her feet and rushed in front of Steven and Connie on their picnic blanket. It was good to see they were trying their best to distract her.

“Hey-!” She started, but Pearl cut her off.

“Garnet! Amethyst!” She squawked.

The more the merrier. Vague memories from before Bismuth was bubbled swirled to the surface of her mind - of the Crystal Gems welcoming and throwing parties for new fusions. This was gonna be great!

The door to the beach house slammed open and Rainbow grinned as Garnet and Amethyst ran out with looks of shock. Then, they came together, forming someone Rainbow had to think for a moment to remember.

“Oh! Sug- oof!”

The massive body spear tackled her right off the hand of the statue and into the ground below, throwing up a cloud of sand. A fist was coming for her face almost faster than she could react. Her hand came up, changing to a hammer before they collided. 

“Woah, nice.”

Rainbow didn’t think Sugilite was as amazed with her new trick. Grabbing her hand -hammer?- and tossing her down the beach seemed like a clear indication of disinterest.

She landed with a bounce and a grunt. Her counterparts were already beat up enough, she could stand to have a little time before another fight to the death. 

“Hey- Wait!” She tried, rolling away from a foot slamming into the sand beside her head, “Real quick, why are we fighting?”

“The Earth belongs to the Crystal Gems!” Sugilite roared.

“Oh! Oh - wait - I am a Crystal Gem!” She staggered to her feet as another punch was launched at her, catching it with ease. Oh, she was  _ strong _ ! She caught the next three just as easily.

“It’s me! Rainbow Obsidian!” She got a headbut to the face for that. She probably should’ve guessed that they wouldn’t know her. She turned, slamming Sugilite into the ground and struggling to keep her down. Rainbow might have been strong, but she was still figuring herself out. Sugilite had the experience advantage. She had to end this fast.

“It’s Jas-muth!” Her voices split into two distinct ones. She scowled and tried again, “Bis-per!” She groaned, “I’m a fusion, dammit!”

Sugilite slowly stopped struggling, squinting behind the angular glasses. “You’re Bismuth and Jasper?”

“Yes!” She let out a sigh of relief.

A rasping laugh started in Sugilite’s chest until she had her head thrown back, “Why didn’t you say so in the first place?”

“A bit hard to talk when I’m hurtling down the beach. Nice throw though.”

“I like you!” She laughed, pushing them both to their feet. “What’d you say your name was? Rainbow Obsidian?”

“Yup.”

Sugilite wrapped her arms around her. Rainbow tensed for a moment, wondering if they were back to fighting, but relaxed after all she got was a good squeeze.

“Welcome to the Crystal Gems.”

Rainbow grinned, hugging her back with all four arms.

“Woah, cool it there big guns, you’re gonna poof me.”

Rainbow laughed, “Are you saying you’d get poofed by a good hug?”

“Cheeky!” Rainbow found herself in a headlock, one massive hand ruffling her hair.

A throat clearing cut their roughhousing short. Rainbow looked down to see Pearl standing with a small smile on her lips and two starry eyed kids in front of her.

“Giant woman.” Steven squealed under his breath, coaxing another round of laughter from Rainbow. 

She crouched down to get a good look at them all. “Nice to meet you all.”

Steven seemed to throw all caution to the wind, bouncing up to her and throwing himself up onto her shoulder, “Oh my gosh! You look so cool!”

Connie had a tougher time. Being unable to float, she clambered up onto a hand and let Rainbow lift her up. “You’re really big!”

She found herself caught in a torrent of rapid fire questions from Steven and exclaimed observations from Connie. She tried to keep up, but the exhaustion was quickly catching up to her. 

Luckily, Pearl came to the rescue. “She still new, give her some time to adjust.” Pearl scolded gently, pulling them both down from climbing all over her like a jumbo sized jungle gym and shooing them towards the house.

“Bye Rainbow! I hope I get to see you again soon!” Steven yelled over his shoulder.

“Same here little man!”

Pearl pressed a hand to her arm, small hand dwarfed by it. “How are you you feeling?”

Rainbow knew that Bismuth and Jasper had a lot of affection for Pearl, but didn’t expect it to bloom so strongly that it nearly took her breath away. She cleared her throat, feeling heat come to her cheeks. “Exhausted, but… good. Thanks, Pearl.”

Pearl smiled and glanced back at the house before giving her an apologetic look. “I’d invite you in, but I don’t think you’d fit.”

Rainbow chuckled, “That’s alright, I’ve got to go back to the forge anyhow. It’s uh, kind of a mess in there.”

“Alright. When I’m done making sure that Connie has a ride home, I’ll meet you there.” With one last pat on the arm, she followed the others inside, leaving Rainbow to stare after her with a dopey smile on her face.

The trip back to the forge was a lot slower, with her energy waning and feet almost dragging by the time she got there. Rainbow took a good look at the door and heaved a sigh. “You better bring me back soon.”

With that, she glowed, shrunk, and separated. 

Jasper and Bismuth shared a long look. They didn’t say anything, but Jasper had the feeling they didn’t need to. They’d said everything they needed for now. So, they started cleaning up.

It wasn’t long before Pearl showed up. Neither of them heard her walk in, but they both heard the startled gasp and the shrill, “What in the world  _ happened _ in here!?”

“Me and Tiger here had a -uh- disagreement.”

“My face really disagreed with your fist.” Jasper snickered.

“You fought!?” Pearl gasped.

Jasper shrugged. “Well, yeah. It’s alright though, we just had to get it out of our system.”

“Yeah, right as rain now. Best of buds, promise.”

Pearl searched their faces for a moment before her concern slowly melted into relief. She laid a hand on both of their arms, letting out a sigh. “Well, I’m glad that neither of you are seriously injured and that you worked things out.” She nudged one half of a snapped axe with her toe. “It’s going to take so long to clean this place up.”

Bismuth caught Jasper’s eyes, a small smile spreading across her face. It only took a moment and Bismuth taking a step forward to catch on, a grin of her own growing.

She could tell the moment Pearl caught on too, turning bright blue and eyes wide as she looked back and forth between the chests she was caught between.

“You’ve been awfully nice to us Pearl.” Bismuth murmured, laying a hand on her back.

She gave a nervous little laugh, “I just know you’re going through a lot right now and I wanted to make it easier on you.”

Jasper felt a tug at her heart. Of course she was. It was just like Pearl to do her damndest to take care of everyone. “How about you let us take care of  _ you _ for once.”

The flush spread down until it met the high collar of her shirt. “I-I mean, if you’d like to I wouldn’t be opposed.”

Jasper’s smile grew and she wasted no time leaning down to capture Pearl’s lips in a firm kiss. A shiver ran down her spine when Pearl groaned into it. The groan quickly turned to a startled squawk when Jasper fitted her hands around Pearl’s thighs and lifted her up to be the same height as both of them, hands flying up to grasp Jasper’s shoulders.

Jasper almost forgot Bismuth was there until she felt the big hands squeeze between them, moving in a way that made Pearl break the kiss with a sharp gasp.

“You mind phasing these off for me, sweetheart?” Bismuth murmured against her ear. Even Jasper had to squirm at the low, soft voice she used. The flash of light wasn’t all too visible with both of them pressed against her, but Jasper felt the bare skin against her hands and gave Pearl’s thighs a squeeze.

Bismuth’s hands started to move again, drawing breathless little moans from Pearl. Jasper never stopped being smitten with the look on Pearl’s face when she was being thoroughly fucked. Eyebrows pulled together, eyes squeezed shut, and mouth open to let out sweet sounds that made goosebumps break out along Jasper’s skin. She pressed her face to the skin of Pearl’s neck, breathing in the sharp scent of the cleaner she always used and something that was unique to Pearl,  letting her tongue and teeth come out to drag across her pulse.

Bismuth’s hands retreated, leaving Pearl’s hips to buck futilely against Jasper’s stomach. “Why’d you stop?” Jasper could tell she was trying to be composed, but the words came out as a plaintive whine.

“I didn’t want to have all the fun myself.” She murmured, tossing Jasper a wink.

Jasper was starting to like Bismuth more and more. Bismuth’s hands replaced hers and she took a step back. Pearl wobbled for a moment before leaning back against her broad chest and reach an arm back to steady herself with a hand on Bismuth’s shoulder.

Jasper’s breath caught in her throat at the sight of Pearl spread out in front of her. As sexually active as they were, it wasn’t something she got to see all that often. Pearl was bent on taking care of her most of the time, leaving herself as an afterthought. Now that she had the opportunity, she was almost at a loss.

Her hands came up to skim along Pearl’s chest and stomach, delighted at the way she arched and pressed into her touch.

“Please stop teasing.” She groaned, hips squirming.

Jasper gave her a toothy grin, but relented. She sank to her knees, pressing a few kisses to Pearl’s torso for good measure, before pressing a long, lazy lick to Pearl’s clit. Pearl’s high pitched keen was like a pair of spurs pressed to her flank, urging her forward to shower Pearl’s pussy and thighs with kisses and licks.

She looked up when a hand clenched tightly at her hair, taking in the sight of Pearl’s head thrown back and Bismuth smiling over her shoulder. Pearl’s chest heaved and shuddered, giving away how close she was and Jasper redoubled her efforts, groaning happily when Pearl jerked and tensed, spilling against her lips.

“You alright there, Pearly bird?” Bismuth cooed when she went slack against her.

Pearl nodded breathlessly, letting go of her vice grip on Jasper’s hair and patting the spot she pulled apologetically.

Jasper grinned, taking the hand in hers and giving it a gentle squeeze. She abruptly realized that they’d become … distracted. As much as the forge needed to be fixed up, she figured it couldn’t hurt to spend a bit more time pampering Pearl. Besides, Bismuth and her made a damn good team.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y'all should really check out Rainbow Obsidian if you haven't already, you can find her on Jasker's blog [ here ](http://jasker.tumblr.com/post/176469540251)


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